Athletic protector

ABSTRACT

An athletic protector comprising a substantially rigid cup or shell integrally formed with a generally U-shaped configuration in transverse cross-section wherein the front curvilinear wall merges with opposite spaced side walls, which side walls are generally parallel to each other along the length of the shell, and wherein the distance between the spaced side walls forming the width of the shell is substantially uniform and equal throughout the length of the shell, and in which the side edges have a slight curvature extending from the top downwardly, with the bottom transverse edge extending slightly above the bottom point of the shell, with said bottom transverse edge extending rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the top transverse edge of the shell, so that said rear bottom edge extends between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer, said shell adapted to be detachably secured to a jock-strap support but spaced from the occupied pouch so that any blow or impact against the shell will not be transmitted to the occupied pouch or to the organs therein supported. The shape of the shell is such that it may be comfortably worn without interfering with the movement of the legs.

Elite tates Patent 1 1 Donars 1111 3,782,375 Jan. 1,1974

[ ATHLETIC PROTECTOR Davis W. Donal-s, 7520 Main St., Downers Grove, Ill. 60515 [22] Filed: Apr. 7, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 242,085

[76] Inventor:

OTHER PUBLICATIONS Johnson & Johnson Catalogue, Aids For Atheletes, 1936, PP- 7.

Primary Examiner-Charles F. Rosenbaum Attorney-Max R. Kraus 5 7 ABSTRACT An athletic protector comprising a substantially rigid cup or shell integrally formed with a generally U- shaped configuration in transverse cross-section wherein the front curvilinear wall merges with opposite spaced side walls, which side walls are generally parallel to each other along the length of the shell, and wherein the distance between the spaced side walls forming the width of the shell is substantially uniform and equal throughout the length of the shell, and in which the side edges have a slight curvature extending from the top downwardly, with the bottom transverse edge extending slightly above the bottom point of the shell, with said bottom transverse edge extending rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the top transverse edge of the shell, so that said rear bottom edge extends between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer, said shell adapted to be detachably secured to a jock-strap support but spaced from the occupied pouch so that any blow or impact against the shell will not be transmitted to the occupied pouch or to the organs therein supported, The shape of the shell is such that it may be comfortably worn without interfering with the movement of the legs.

5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures ATHLETIC PROTECTOR BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The conventional triangular-shaped athletic protective cup has serious disadvantages by virtue of the flared sides at the top which restricts the freedom of movement of the legs and causes shifting of the protective cup from side to side and up and down as the wearer raises and lowers his legs as when running. The prior art also shows a mens supporter, in which the receptacle is oblong and has generally parallel spaced sides and same is additionally provided with flexible and resilient wings extending laterally outwardly from the opposite side edges of the receptacle. The said re ceptacle has straight side edges and the bottom of the receptacle extends upwardly to form a substantially deep lower pocket with an inner or rear wall, the upper edge of the inner wall extending a substantial distance upwardly from the bottom of said receptacle. The Creed receptacle fits directly over and is in direct contact with the penis and scrotum. A structure of this character is objectionable in that when worn it would interfere with the movement of the legs and would likewise wobble and/or move from tip to bottom relative to the body. Additionally, the upwardly curved inner bottom wall would apply a substantial pressure against the scrotum andtesticles which would be accentuated as the wearer moved or ran.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide an athletic protector comprising a substantially rigid cup or shell which is generally of a U-shapedconfiguration in transverse section, with the front wall of generally arcuate shape merging with spaced side walls which are generally parallel to each other, with the width between the spaced side walls being substantially equal throughout the length of the shell or cup. The lower end of the shell is shaped so that the bottom transverse edge of the lower end terminates slightly above the lowermost point of the cup and extends rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the tip transverse edge of the shell so that said rear bottom edge extends between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer. Also, the side edges of the cup are slightly curvilinear to conform to the curvature of the body..The shape of the protector is such that it will not wobble or move laterally from side to side and will not wobble from top to bottom, as is true of the aforementioned prior art constructions.

Another object of this invention is to provide a protector of the foregoing character which is used in combination with a flexible and resilient jock-strap in which the penis and scrotum are supported in the pouch of the jock-strap and held supported therein, and wherein the occupied pouch of the jock-strap is in spaced relation to the shell or cup so that any impact against the cup will be absorbed by the cup and will not be transmitted to the penis, scrotum or testicles.

Another object of this invention is to provide a jockstrap in combination with a protector in which the jock-strap pouch acts as a support for the penis and scrotum and in which the protector is a separate member which is detachably secured to the jock-strap and acts as a protective shield for same and where the occupied pouch is always maintained in a spaced relation to the protector.

Another object of this invention is to provide a protector which may be detachably secured to the jockstrap and which will eliminate all of the objectionable features inherent in the prior devices and which may be worn comfortable and will not wobble from side to side or from top to bottom.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded view showing the flexible jock-support and the rigid shell or cup which is adapted to be detachably secured thereto.

FIG. 2 is a central longitudinal view of the shell.

FIG. 3 is a view partially in section taken on line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a rear planview of the shell without the sponge edging; and

FIG. 5 is a view showing the positioning of the pouch of the jock-strap when occupied in relation to the protective shell.

The substantially rigid shell or cup forming this invention is generally designated by the numeral 10 and is formed or molded preferably of a plastic material, and is generally of a concave-convex shape in trans verse cross-section, which may also be described as a U-shape, and comprises a curvilinear front wall 12 with continuing spaced rearwardly extending side walls 14, with the side walls being generally planar and being parallel to each other. The width of the cup as measured by the spaced distance between the side walls 14 is substantially uniform and equal from the top towards the bottom. 7

The cup or shell 10 .is shaped so that the front wall 12 slopes downwardly in a gradual are when viewed from a side profile, as in FIGS. 1 or 2, to the maximum forward point indicatedat 16 from which it curves downwardly and inwardly towards the bottom. The bottom 18 of the cup then inclines slightly upwardly at the rear. The bottom transverse edge 20 is curved slightly and is joined by the opposite rounded corners 21 to the side edges 22 and the transverse bottom edge 20 is slightly above the bottom point of the cup and rearwardly of the top transverse edge 24. The top transverse edge 24 is generally straight and is joined by the rounded corners 26 to the side edges 22. As can be seen, the shallowest portion of the cup is adjacent the top and progressively increases in depth so that the deepest portion is adjacent the bottom. An important factor is that the transverse bottom edge 20 extends back and rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the transverse top edge 24. This is best shown in FIG. 2 in which the vertical line 25 indicates the vertical plane passing through the top edge 24, and the vertical line 27 indicates the vertical plane passing through the bottom transverse edge 20, and the distance therebetween indicated by the arrowed horizontal line 29, indicates the distance that the bottom transverse edge 20 extends rearwardly of the top transverse edge 24. The rear bottom edge 20 will extend between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer.

The jock-strap generally designated by the numeral 36 is formed of a flexible resilient webbing material and is in the main of a generally conventional character, except for the Velcro strips which are stitched or secured to it and which are to be detachably secured to the Velcro strips on the shell or cup 10. The jock-strap 36 comprises the usual waist strap 38, leg straps 40 and pouch 42 at the front thereof. Secured as by stitching or otherwise to the front of the waist strap is a pair of Velcro strips 44 and a similar Velcro strip 46 is secured at the bottom. When the jock-strap 36 is worn, the pouch 42 supports and encloses the penis, testicles and scrotum therewithin and to protect same against shock and injury the rigid cup 10 is positioned over the pouch 42, as shown in FIG. 5, and is detachably secured thereto by having the Velcro strips 44 on the jock-strap engage the top Velcro strips 32 on the cup, with the bottom Velcro strip 46 on the jock-strap secured and attached to the bottom Velcro strip 34 on the cup. In lieu of the Velcro strips shown, other detachable means may be employed, for example, snap fasteners, zipper components, and other types of conventional fasteners may be utilized wherein the protector 10 is readily detachably secured to the jock-strap.

As can best be seen in the FIG. 5 profile, the body elements are supported within the pouch 42 of the jockstrap but the pouch when thus occupied is spaced from the shell of the cup, particularly at the front and at the underside thereof. The spacing distance between the occupied pouch and the shell or protector 10 is such that irrespective of the blow or impact against the protector or shell it will remain in a spaced relation to the occupied pouch so that the blow or impact is not transmitted to the organs supported in the occupied pouch.

It will be particularly noted that the bottom of the pouch 42 is spaced upwardly from the bottom of the rigid cup, and that the bottom transverse edge 20 of the shell or cup 10 is spaced below the occupied pouch 42 of the jock-strap so that there would be no engagement between the bottom transverse edge 20 of the rigid cup and the pouch 42. This is a very important factor in that the testicles or scrotum would not engage or be in such close proximity to the lower bottom edge 20 as to rub or bear thereagainst.

With this construction the rigid cup can be readily attached to or readily removed from the jock-strap so that the jock-strap can be laundered and the rigid shell can also be cleaned.

What is claimed is:

1. An athletic protector comprising in combination a rigid shell or cup with a flexible jock-strap, said rigid shell or cup having a generally U-shaped configuration in transverse section, with a front curvilinear wal continuing with spaced rearwardly extending side walls, which side walls are generally planar and are substantially parallel to each other so that the width of the shell between the spaced side walls is substantially uniform and equal along the length of the shell and said rearwardly extending side walls having a curvilinear edge said shell having attaching means, said flexible jockstrap having a pouch which is positioned inside said shell, and said flexible jock-strap having attaching means which are detachablysecured to said attaching means on said jock-strap.

2. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which attaching strips are of Velcro which are secured to the jockstrap and to said shell for detachably securing said strips to the Velcro strips on the shell.

3. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the occupied pouch when positioned inside the rigid shell is positioned in a spaced relation with respect to the shell so that any impact against the shell will not be transmitted to the occupied pouch, and in which the shell has a top transverse edge and a bottom transverse edge extending rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the top transverse edge so that the bottom transverse edge extends between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer.

4. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the shell has a bottom transverse edge which is slightly above the bottom of the shell and in which the occupied pouch does not contact said bottom transverse edge.

5. A structure as set forth in claim 4 in which the curvilinear edge of the side walls and the bottom transverse edge is covered with a resilient material. 

1. An athletic protector comprising in combination a rigid shell or cup with a flexible jock-strap, said rigid shell or cup having a generally U-shaped configuration in transverse section, with a front curvilinear wall continuing with spaced rearwardly extending side walls, which side walls are generally planar and are substantially parallel to each other so that the width of the shell between the spaced side walls is substantially uniform and equal along the length of the shell and said rearwardly extending side walls having a curvilinear edge, said shell having attaching means, said flexible jock-strap having a pouch which is positioned inside said shell, and said flexible jock-strap having attaching means which are detachably secured to said attaching means on said jock-strap.
 2. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which attaching strips are of Velcro which are secured to the jock-strap and to said shell for detachably securing said strips to the Velcro strips on the shell.
 3. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the occupied pouch when positioned inside the rigid shell is positioned in a spaced relation with respect to the shell so that any impact against the shell will not be transmitted to the occupied pouch, and in which the shell has a top transverse edge and a bottom transverse edge extending rearwardly of a vertical plane passing through the toP transverse edge so that the bottom transverse edge extends between the legs and under the scrotum of the wearer.
 4. A structure as set forth in claim 1 in which the shell has a bottom transverse edge which is slightly above the bottom of the shell and in which the occupied pouch does not contact said bottom transverse edge.
 5. A structure as set forth in claim 4 in which the curvilinear edge of the side walls and the bottom transverse edge is covered with a resilient material. 